 expectations may be low, but it's where the battle may be won or lost in an election likely decided at the margins. The stakes are only low if you're judging it as a kind of theater, said David Axelrod, former top Barack Obama strategist. It may be one of the more consequential in American history. As in 2016 and 2020, voters who hold an unfavorable view of both the Democrat and Republican candidates tilt slightly toward Trump.